Related Links

Washington - Democracy around the world was in decline in 2012 for the
seventh year in a row as the Arab Spring led nervous autocratic leaders to
clamp down on any stirrings of dissent, a study said on Wednesday.

The annual report by the Freedom House non-governmental organisation found
90 countries now enjoyed full freedom, up from 87 nations in 2011, but 27
places saw new restrictions on rights of assembly, expression, and the media.

There "is a critical need for leadership from the United States and
other democracies", the "Freedom in the World 2013" report said,
arguing in favour of a greater US engagement with civil society in oppressed
nations.

Some three billion people, or 43% of the global population, enjoyed full
political rights and civil liberties, while 1.6 billion resided in partly free
countries, where there is only limited respect for freedoms in place.

Growing sophistication

Some 34% of the world's population, or 2.3 billion people, however lived in
countries deemed to be not free.

Russia, Iran, which stepped up its repression of journalists and bloggers,
and Venezuela - where President Hugo Chavez was re-elected against a backdrop
of a "badly skewed" electoral playing field - were singled out by the
report.

"Our findings point to the growing sophistication of modern
authoritarians," said Arch Puddington, Freedom House vice president for
research.

"They are flexible, they distort and abuse the legal framework, they
are adept at the techniques of modern propaganda," he added in a
statement.

"But especially since the Arab Spring, they are nervous, which accounts
for their intensified persecution of popular movements for change."

Authoritarian regimes moved to weaken "the elements of democratic
governance that pose the most serious threats to repressive and corrupt rule:
independent civil society groups, a free press, and the rule of law", the
report said.

There were some successes for democracy, with the most dramatic improvements
since 2008 seen in Libya, Tunisia and Myanmar. Egypt, Zimbabwe, Moldova and
Ivory Coast were also among those countries where repressive restrictions were
eased.

Decline

But Mali, where rebel soldiers ousted the elected government last year,
topped the list of nations in which the most freedoms were lost, suffering
"one of the greatest single-year declines in the history of Freedom in the
World", said the report, which has been drawn up annually since 1972.

"Nigeria, another country plagued by Islamist militants, suffered a
less dramatic decline, as did the Central African Republic, which at year's end
risked being conquered by a rebel group."

The most serious declines in freedom in the Asia-Pacific region were seen in
the Maldives, where the democratically-elected president was forcibly removed,
and Sri Lanka, marred by corruption.

And China's communist leaders continued to operated "the world's most
complex and sophisticated apparatus for political control".

The report also warned that since the re-election of Vladimir Putin as the
president of Russia, the country has "ushered in a new period of
accelerated repression".

"Putin has moved in a calculated way to stifle independent political
and civic activity, pushing through a series of laws meant to restrict public
protest, limit the work of NGOs, and inhibit free expression on the Internet.

"With Russia setting the tone, Eurasia [consisting of the countries of
the former Soviet Union minus the Baltic states] now rivals the Middle East as
one of the most repressive areas on the globe," the report said.

Freedom House also took aim at the administration of US President Barack
Obama, saying it had "failed to offer a credible response" after
Moscow kicked out the US Agency for International Development late last year.

"The administration has built an uneven record on support for freedom
to date. There have been some positive initiatives, but there have also been
occasions when the United States stood by while those who put their lives on
the line for political change were crushed, as with Iran in 2009," it
charged.

24.com publishes all comments posted on articles provided that they adhere to our Comments Policy. Should you wish to report a comment for editorial review, please do so by clicking the 'Report Comment' button to the right of each comment.

Tell us a bit about yourself:

Saving your profile

Settings

News24 allows you to edit the display of certain components based on a location.
If you wish to personalise the page based on your preferences, please select a
location for each component and click "Submit" in order for the changes to
take affect.

Your Location*

Weather*

Always remember my setting

Saving your settings

Facebook Sign-In

Hi News addict,

Join the News24 Community to be involved in breaking the news.

Log in with Facebook to comment and personalise news, weather and listings.